HomeNewsbeat‎Defamation: Natasha To Appear In Court Tuesday, June 3rd

‎Defamation: Natasha To Appear In Court Tuesday, June 3rd

‎The suspended senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District of Kogi State, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, will appear in court on Tuesday, as summoned.

‎This was confirmed by her lead counsel, West Idahosa (SAN), on Sunday.

‎Idahosa, however, expressed uncertainty about whether the Federal Government planned to arraign her on Tuesday.

‎He said that whatever the plans of the Federal Government, Akpoti-Uduaghan, as a law-abiding citizen, would comply with the court’s directives.

‎The Federal Government, through the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mohammed Abubakar, filed criminal charges against Akpoti-Uduaghan, alleging that she made defamatory statements during a live television broadcast and a private telephone conversation.

‎These statements reportedly targeted the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello.

‎According to the charge, filed on May 16, 2025, at the Federal Capital Territory High Court and marked CR/297/25, Akpoti-Uduaghan is accused of making a statement during an appearance on Politics Today on Channels TV on April 3, 2025, where she alleged that Akpabio and Bello discussed plans to assassinate her.

‎“It was part of the meeting, the discussions that Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night— to eliminate me… he then emphasised that I should be killed in Kogi,” the charge quotes her as saying.

‎Additionally, the government accused Akpoti-Uduaghan of making defamatory remarks in a telephone conversation on March 27, 2025.

‎In the conversation with a woman named Dr Sandra Duru, Akpoti-Uduaghan allegedly claimed that Akpabio was linked to organ harvesting involving the late Iniubong Umoren, purportedly for the benefit of his ailing wife.

‎Akpabio, Bello, and four others have been listed as key witnesses in the trial.

‎In a phone interview with DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS, Idahosa reiterated the readiness of the legal team to defend Akpoti-Uduaghan in court.

‎“If the case is called tomorrow, we will respond accordingly with our client.

‎“The issue of protest is irrelevant to us — we are lawyers, and our focus is on defending charges we believe can be contested. Protests are the domain of civil societies and others in that terrain,” Idahosa said.

‎He further stated, “Our client is a law-abiding citizen. Why wouldn’t she be there? It’s a summons we have undertaken. Only disrespectful institutions that disregard court orders would fail to appear, and she is not in that category.”

‎When asked about the possibility of arraignment, Idahosa noted, “We don’t know. We saw a notice of amended charges. We don’t know what they are trying to do. They’ve amended the charges once and could do so again—it’s their decision.”


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